×

Jones sworn in as next police chief; Tupper honored for distinguished service

T-R PHOTO BY ROBERT MAHARRY New Marshalltown Police Chief Chris Jones, flanked by his wife Jenny, is sworn in by Mayor Joel Greer during Monday night’s city council meeting. Jones, who previously served as a captain in the MPD, will succeed his former boss, retiring Chief Mike Tupper.

The council chambers at city hall were packed to the brim for the beginning of Monday night’s meeting as a crowd gathered to witness a historic occasion: the swearing in of Marshalltown’s next police chief.

While it has been known since October that Capt. Chris Jones would assume the role once current Chief Mike Tupper officially retired at the end of January, the passing of the torch became official on Monday. First, Tupper was presented with a plaque for his work with the local group Labor and Sex Trafficking (LAST) Watch, and about 15 minutes later, Mayor Joel Greer presented him with a distinguished service award and noted his 13 plus years of service to the city of Marshalltown that began on Oct. 31, 2011.

“You have been a leader with the courage to make tough decisions and the compassion to listen to the voice of others. We celebrate your contributions and your achievements throughout your tenure, and we thank you for serving our community with passion and compassion,” Greer said. “Thank you for your service.”

After a thunderous round of applause, Tupper had the chance to address the mayor, council, city clerk and city administrator, expressing his gratitude and surprise at receiving the award.

Before reflecting on the end of his career with the MPD, however, the outgoing chief first addressed some of the remarks that had been made during the public comment period on towing requests, human trafficking and drug and gang issues both locally and across the country.

“Marshalltown is a beautiful community with hardworking people. We’re blue collar. We take care of each other. We stick together. We’re diverse in so many ways. We look like the rest of the world, and that’s why I came here 13 years ago. And I love it,” he said. “Marshalltown’s my home, it’s gonna continue to be my home, and I celebrate it. Do we have some problems that need to be worked out? Absolutely, but to oversimplify issues and say things that are unfounded does not help us. These are complicated issues.”

As he addressed the award more specifically, the chief deflected credit and said it instead belonged to the men and women of the MPD, and he spoke highly of both his job and his colleagues while admitting that he has sometimes wondered if he’s making the biggest mistake of his life by retiring.

“I don’t know what’s next for me, but it’s not gonna be as good as what I’m walking away from. And I appreciate everything,” Tupper said.

He added that he would take credit for mistakes and “stupid things” under his leadership, but he reiterated his gratitude for the work of MPD staff and the opportunity to serve the people of Marshalltown.

“They have embraced the Tupper family, and I just don’t have the words to accurately describe how I feel or how much I appreciate it,” he said. “Chris Jones is gonna be the best police chief this community has ever seen, and I’m looking forward to seeing what he does next. So thank you for this, and I’m here for four more days.”

Councilor and Mayor Pro Tem Mike Ladehoff previously served on the council prior to Tupper’s tenure and said the difference between two decades ago and now was like “night and day.”

“I often tell people that we have the best police force in the state, and I truly mean that. Your attitude, your professionalism and everything like that, I believe it is something to really be proud of,” Ladehoff said. “It used to be that we would get calls quite a few times on city council about police conduct, that kind of thing. I don’t get those (now). None, and I believe that a lot of that is because of what Mike Tupper brought to the police department. He knew it needed to change, and he did do that, and all for the better. So even though Mike may retire, he’s always gonna be with us with the professionalism that he built here and that Marshalltown’s gonna be lucky enough to have for many more years with Chris.”

To avoid getting too emotional in front of the meeting crowd, Greer urged those in the audience to read an upcoming feature story on Tupper’s tenure and retirement that will run in the T-R this weekend. From there, he moved on to swearing in Jones, who stood alongside his wife Jenny before she eventually pinned him to officially complete the process.

After another hearty round of applause, Jones stepped forward to the podium and thanked the mayor, council, City Administrator Carol Webb, Tupper, fellow city staff and his family for all of their support in recent months. The Spencer native explained that growing up, he had always wanted to be a police officer but didn’t know where that dream may lead him in the long term.

Once he graduated from Iowa State University, he was hired on at the MPD almost 30 years ago.

“My only goal in the beginning was to make the most of the short amount of time that I believed I could do this job and set out to see what I could accomplish,” he said.

Jones said he sometimes hears from people who tell him they could never do his job, and while it initially takes him aback, it’s also a strong reminder of just how difficult law enforcement can be between the split second decision making, potential criticism and the long hours and holidays they work.

“I can understand how it’s overwhelming, and I can understand why someone would not want to step into these positions to do this. But what people need to understand is (that) I did not get here by myself,” he said. “There’s a group of people here that have come to support me. Many of them have helped me in all of my bad times. They’ve encouraged me to continue to build this agency and make it into what we believe it’s going to be. And building those relationships and continuing to build those relationships are my major priorities because I know that none of us can do it ourselves. And as a city, collectively, we are going to make Marshalltown a safe place to live.”

Before moving on to regular business, Greer remarked that he had never seen so many people inside the chambers during a meeting throughout his time both as a councilor and mayor.

In other business, the council:

• Approved the consent agenda as listed.

• Approved new Class C retail liquor licenses for Lucy’s Dive Bar (which will be opening at the site of the old Dave and Sally’s on East Main Street) and Bobcat Pines LLC (which will take over the American Legion at 1301 S. 6th St.)

——

Contact Robert Maharry at 641-753-6611 ext. 255 or

rmaharry@timesrepublican.com.

Starting at $4.38/week.

Subscribe Today